Hello & welcome back to Trotting Through Life and today, we kick off our first review for Party With Pinkie as we take a look at Griffon The Brush Off. The first episode that tackled the theme of bullying and perhaps in a more subtle manner than the episode that came later in the show's run that was an anti-bullying episode that was more blatant about it's message.
Episode Title
Griffon The Brush Off
This episode title is twofold as it refers to both the antagonist of the episode, Gilda and it's also referencing a saying as according to the MLP Wiki.
The title is a play on the phrase "given the brush-off", which is an abrupt and rude dismissal.
I didn't know that as I had never heard this phrase before but that does put that in some context to the way that Gilda treated Pinkie Pie.
The Plot
We kick the episode off with Pinkie looking for Rainbow Dash and Dash trying to avoid the Pink Party Pony at all costs as she seemed to be annoyed by her antics at first.
But soon, we see the two ponies hanging out and bonding over playing harmless pranks on their friends.
Though, something of interest here is what Pinkie says when Dash says that their next target is Fluttershy.
What?! No-no-no-no-no! Fluttershy is too sensitive to prank
It's a small moment but it shows how much Pinkie cared for her friends and makes me wonder what happened between this and Filli Vanilli to have Pinkie be the insensitive not-Pinkie, she was in that episode. And the next day, we are introduced to Gilda and boy, fan reaction to the griffon was mixed at best in her debut episode.
Some fans hated her because she made Fluttershy cry. And yeah, I didn't like that but I think one of the bigger problems that people had with her is that she came across as a stereotype of a '90s jerk. At least that is part of what I've heard from some fans. As for me, she's not bad but it is a bit weird to go back see her debut episode after her reformation in season 5. That's for another day, however. Throughout all of the episode during Gilda & Pinkie's interactions, you can visibly see how annoyed Gilda is by the Pink Party Pony as Gilda wants to hang out with her old friend from flight school and sure, it may come across as Pinkie inserting herself into the group without asking permission.
And one could compare this to season 2's A Friend In Deed and Pinkie's interaction with Cranky in that episode but there is something that sets this apart from that episode. In A Friend In Deed, Pinkie takes it too far and the episode allows us to sympathize with Cranky as Pinkie is being too much whereas here with Gilda, there are two factors in play. Yes, Pinkie is partially jealous as Twilight mentions but on the grander scale, the episode paints Gilda in a negative light, so that the audience can understand that Gilda is a bully and in this episode, they never back down from that. As they constantly show Gilda being a bully not only to Pinkie but in the scene, where Dash goes to work and we see Gilda hang around Ponyville, we get the sense that she is not a very nice
But there's more to it than just that as you also have to factor all of the ways, we've seen her treat Pinkie previously in the episode and then the two moments that precede this infamous scene, Gilda pranking Granny Smith and then stealing an apple. Add all of these together and you get the sense that Gilda is one bad egg. And this of course is when Pinkie gets the idea to fix Gilda's attitude, Pinkie Pie style as she decides to throw a party to fix Gilda's bad attitude. Does this work?
Uhm well... no because Gilda has bad luck and ends up falling for pranks that were all set up by Dash and this only infuriates the griffon and does nothing to lighten her mood. Instead, it only worsens her mood. And she blames all of this on Rainbow Dash but Dash has had enough of this and stands up for her friend against Gilda.
You know, this is not how I thought my old friend would treat my new friends. If "being cool" is all you care about, then maybe you should find some "new cool friends" someplace else.
Again, another small moment but considering how oblivious, Dashie had been to Gilda's actions up to this point, it really hits home and as we'll see the next time, these two former friends will meet, Dash is still scorned by the way, Gilda treated one of her friends. And the episode ends with Twilight Sparkle sending a letter to Princess Celestia with a prank being played on Tia as she tries writing back but her ink was replaced with disappearing ink.
Overall, this was a good episode as it did a pretty decent job of showing Pinkie in a good light and never crosses line into afterschool special territory with the treatment of bullying. As it is a realistic depiction and I feel like using Pinkie as the bullied character was a good choice as it shows that bullying can happen to anypony.
Main Character
Pinkie Pie voiced by Andrea Libman
This was one of the truly likable Pinkie Pie episodes as it presents Pinkie in a relatable light. And the situation that she is placed is very real as I imagine that a lot of the audience members watching can relate to the plight that Pinkie was placed in. She never meant harm to Gilda and she never crossed a line into annoying territory. She always meant well but Gilda never cared about anything that Pinkie did as she hated Pinkie Pie before even getting to know her.
Supporting Character
Rainbow Dash voiced by Ashleigh Ball
Dash does seem t disappear halfway through the episode but keeping her oblivious to the way that Gilda treated Pinkie was a smart move as it made the sting all the more real at the end as she lost a childhood friend because of the actions of said former friend.
Antagonist
Gilda voiced by Marÿke Hendrikse
This episode did a good job of showing how much of a bully, Gilda truly was and how there really wasn't anything likable about her. They sprinkled small moments of her bullying throughout the episode and when you put them all together, you see how unlikable she truly is and at the time of this episode, it really didn't seem like there was anything redeemable about this griffon.
My Final Thoughts
All in all, this was a pretty good episode and it did a good episode that handled bullying in a good manner and it actually made you feel for Pinkie throughout and you just wanted to see Gilda stop as Pinkie really did nothing to earn the wrath of Gilda. So I think that we are off to a good start with this Pinkie Pie retrospective. Join me next time as we look at...
Swarm of The Century
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